Hyderabad: Former minister T Harish Rao demanded the Telangana govt to immediately reduce VAT on petrol and diesel by at least 10% and provide genuine relief to the people. In a letter to chief minister Revanth Reddy on Monday, Harish Rao said that the Congress govt has failed to provide relief to people despite repeatedly promising reduction in fuel prices before elections. He said the poor, middle class, farmers, transport operators, small traders and salaried employees are facing severe financial pressure due to continuous increase in petrol and diesel prices.Harish Rao pointed out that petrol prices in Hyderabad have reached ₹115.62 per litre and diesel prices ₹103.76 per litre. He said repeated fuel price hikes across the country have also resulted in massive additional VAT collections for the Telangana govt.Going by the tax calculations, he said, Telangana is expected to receive nearly ₹2,000 crore additional VAT revenue annually because VAT is imposed as a percentage on fuel prices. He alleged that while people are suffering under inflation and rising household expenses, the govt is earning huge revenues through higher fuel taxes.The BRS deputy leader reminded the CM that when he was PCC President, he strongly criticized the previous BRS govt over VAT on fuel and promised relief to people by reducing taxes. However, after coming to power, the Congress govt has not reduced VAT even by 0.1%, he said.He stated that a govt claiming to believe in “Praja Palana” cannot burden people with high fuel taxes while families are struggling to manage daily expenses. He demanded that the Telangana govt immediately reduce VAT on petrol and diesel by at least 10% and provide genuine relief to the people.Harish Rao also stated that the government must decide whether it stands with suffering people or with higher tax collections. The BRS leader also sent a copy of the letter to leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, requesting him to advise the Telangana CM to fulfil the promises repeatedly made by the Congress party on reducing VAT on petrol and diesel.
